M-TECH Thesis Abstract
The importance of heavy
metal pollution control has increased significantly in recent decades. Unlike
organic pollutants, metals are non-biodegradable and may enter the food chain
from the environment hence removal of heavy metal ions becomes essential. A
number of physio-chemical technologies are available for trace metal removal
but these methods often involve high capital and operational costs and may also
be associated with the generation of secondary wastes, which present treatment
problems. Use of low cost adsorbents offers a potential alternative to existing
methods for removal of metals from solutions.
Biosorption defined as the ability
of biological materials to accumulate heavy metals from wastewater through
metabolically mediated or physico-chemical pathways of uptake. Biosorption is a
cost effective and excellent tool for the removal of heavy metals. The major
advantages of biosorption over conventional treatment methods include low cost,
high efficiency, minimization of chemical and/or biological sludge, no
additional nutrient requirement, regeneration of biosorbent and possibility of
metal recovery.
For the present work adsorptive
properties of coir pith is been evaluated for heavy metal removal. The
objectives of the study are to conduct batch studies for the optimization of
parameters to obtain maximum removal efficiency, to determine the reaction
kinetics and develop equilibrium model for the study and to perform continuous
flow sorption studies. The effect of pH, contact time, adsorbent dosage, rate
of mixing, size of adsorbent and metal ion concentration on the ability of
biomass to remove metal from solution are investigated. Feasibility of coir
pith for removal of metal ions such as Cu, Zn and Ni from synthetic effluents
in single metal state and multi-metallic state was analyzed.
Girly Mary George,
Asst. Engineer, LSGD Section,
Okkal-Mudakkuzha GP
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